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Want to save money on your car insurance?
General Info
Coverage Levels
Public Policy
Pricing Plans
Everyone wants to get cheap car insurance, but what can you do to make sure
you get the right quote. There are 3 steps that will help and they are
listed below:
- Limit your risk factors
- Shop around before you buy
- Shop around after you buy
1) Limit your car insurance risk factors
Insurance (and car insurance is no exception) is all about judging
risk. Before any company will ensure you and your family, they're going to
access how much risk you pose. Specifically, they're going to try to
deduce statistically what the chances are that you will get into an accident
that will obviously cost them far more than they have collected from you in car
insurance premiums. So, below are some of the big factors that will
play into their decisions:
Age & Gender
Car Insurance companies look at
statistics. They're interested not only in cause and effect, but also
corollary
evidence. In other words, if you're 16, you are inexperienced and
therefore more likely to get into an accident. Cause and effect.
However, there are other correlations between age and risk that go far beyond
experience. Specifically, teens make up only 7% of licensed drivers, but
account for 14% of fatalities and 20% of all reported accidents. There are
many specific causes for these numbers but because of these statistics, if
you're under 20 years of age, you are significantly more likely to cost the
insurance
companies money, and therefore, expect your premiums to be significantly
higher. Statistically, you're also much more likely to cost the car
insurance company money if you're male, rather than female. Again, there
are many specific reasons for this, such as the fact that in a fatal car
accident, men are twice as likely as women to be DWI. These kinds of
statistics make it easy to see why they'll charge more for insuring men than
women.
What can you do? Well, if you're married, you may be able to save some
money by putting the car in your name and leaving your husband off of the title
all together. If you drive the car more than your husband, be sure to let
the insurance company know this. They might not care, but it can't
hurt. If you have kids (they won't like this), but you might be able to
get them excluded from the policy. They will not be covered if they drive
the car, but you could potentially save some serious
cash
Your Car
The car that you ensure also will effect how
much you pay for your car insurance. If the car has airbags, the insurance
company is less likely to have to pay medical bills for an accident and will cut
your premiums a small amount. If you have an anti theft device such as an
alarm, or the club, they may save you some money on theft insurance. If
you are driving an early SUV that has been linked to rollover
events, they may charge you more. If you drive a red car, you're
more likely (statistically) to also drive fast and therefore get into more serious
accidents on a more frequent basis. They'll charge you more for
this as well.
There isn't very much you can do about this if you're trying to insure a
vehicle that you already own, but these factors can be considered when
purchasing your next vehicle.
2) Shop around before you buy car insurance
Different car insurance companies cater to a different audience.
Shopping around to multiple companies can make a huge difference in your monthly
premiums. Some companies cater to drivers with a really solid driving
record. By only insuring good drivers, they can keep their costs down and
pass those savings on to you. The problem with companies like this is that
as soon as you get into any accidents (or if you already have any points on your
license) your premiums are likely to sky-rocket, or your coverage could be
cancelled altogether. Other companies offer lots of service, but charge
for it in the long run. Other companies look very closely at how/when/why
you use your vehicle to cover you appropriately.
The bottom line though is that because of the many different approaches to
how premiums are calculated, the policy that one company writes for you could be
quite different than another. Shop around before making your decision.
3) Shop around after you buy your coverage
Then, every 6-12 months, take an hour and shop around some more. The
insurance industry is constantly in flux, and it's quite possible that you can
save money by switching to a different company. Also, because the industry
is so competitive, if you get a competitive quote from another company, it's
quite possible that your current company will match that quote, you won't even
have to switch. Making a couple of quick phone calls though, or browsing
through a couple of car insurance websites from time to time can also have a
serious effect.
Good luck, and drive safe!
Other Resources:
- Health Insurance Quotes - Offers health insurance quotes nationwide.
- Auto Insurance Quotes - Offers auto & car insurance quotes nationwide.
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